The main character of this story is my mom. She first came to the United State in 1986 at the age of 21. She has just finished college in Beijing, China and decided to come to the US for graduate study. It wasn't easy to travel to the other side of the ocean back then, so she was very precious about this opportunity. She couldn't work because she was holding the student visa. So she could only work in the school or work for her professors. She told me she had a lot of fun studying in the US and I could tell it was true by seeing her face when she was telling me the story. Years later, in 1993, she finally got her green card. Which means she has finally become a permanent residence in the United State and she can work in any company now. However, my mom decided to leave after getting the green card. She went back to HongKong to pursue her dream, where she met my dad. But she still had to travel back and forth between HongKong and The US due to the regulation. My mom told me that during the time she was in HongKong, she started to think back the experiences in the US. She loved it, and she can’t be more grateful for all the love. But the experiences also helped her realize how much she loved her hometown, China. Growling up my mom repeatedly told me:” you never know how much you love your own country until you’re not there anymore.” Therefore she decided to give up her green card after she had me. She wanted to be Chinese. This little card somehow played as a harmless burden that pushed her to understand her true self. 

– ST

Relationship:  Im/migrant Im/migrant